Sliding-door hanger



K. J. TOBIN. I SLIDING DOOR HANGER. APPLICATION FILED APR- 2, I920.

Patented Apr. 5, 1921.

2 SHEETSSHEET I.

l K. J. TOBIN. SLIDING DOOR HANGER. APPLICATION FILED APR.2. 1920.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

UNiTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SLIDING-DOOR HANGER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 5, 1921.

Application filed April 2, 1920. Serial No. 370,662.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, KENNETH J. ToBrN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State oi? Illinois, have invented certain new and useful improvements in Sliding-Door Hangers, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact specification.

My invention relates to door hangers of the sliding door type and particularly to an improved hanger and track wherein the hanger is adjustable both vertically and let erally to compensate for irregularities due to warping or settling of the building or car to which my invention is applied.

One object of my invention is to provide a door hanger comprising a series of fixed brackets secured to the building or car and carrying adjustable rollers, the door being suspended thereon by a track or hanger, which is formed to partly embrace the rollers, the bottom oi said door being guided by a series of roller guides to insure ease of operation.

Another object is to provide a door hanger that will aii'ord a wide range of adjustment both vertically and laterally relative to its support without disarrangelnent of the track.

Still another object is to provide a door hanger that comprises a series of adjustable rollers and a cooperating track secured to the door in such a manner that the door cannot be removed or disarranged during operation or until one or more of the adjustable rollers are removed from the fixed brackets.

Still another object is to provide a door hanger that comprises a series of adjustable rollers supported by independent fixed brackets, the said rollers being adjustable both vertically and laterally, both adjustments being accomplished by a single adj usting means.

Still another object is toprovide a door hanger of the described type embodying a series of fixed brackets carrying adjustable rollers and each bracket provided with a watershed. a

With the above and other objects in view, my invention consists in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinaiter described, claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which- Figure 1 is a fragmentary front elevation of a wall and door with my invention applied thereto. 1

Fig. 2 is a partial vertical section on an enlarged scale taken on line ri -A of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a detail view of one of the brackets equipped with the adjustable roller and watershed constituting a complete fixture or unit.

Fig. 4 is a side view of a bracket partly in section, the dotted lines showing the manner in which the roller may be vertically adjusted.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a bracket, the dotted lines showing the manner in which the roller may be laterally adjusted.

Fig. 6 is a sectional detail View of the upper part of the roller post.

Fig. 7 is a similar view of a modified construction, and r Fig. 8 is a detail view of a modified construction of track or hanger mounting.

in the embodiment illustrated by the drawings, my invention is shown in connec tion with the usual wall 10 having secured thereto, in any well-known manner, the fixed brackets 11, said brackets having an outwardly projecting horizontal portion 12 formed with a transversely extending slot 13 adjusted to receive the threaded post 14. At the upper end of said post is a head portion 15 which is preferably recessed cupshaped as shown at 15 to receive the ball or roller 16. The ball 16 is placed in the recess 15 which is made to a depth slightly below the center of the ball or roller 16 so that said ball may be loosely secured from being displaced during transit or operation by peening over the edge of the head portion 15, as shown at 17 (Fig. 6).

The threaded post 1% passes through the slot 13 in the bracket 11 and is adjustably secured thereto by the usual nuts 18 and 18 one above the projecting portion 12 of the fixed bracket 11 and the other below.

It is evident from the structure just described that loosening nuts 18 and 18 permit the threaded post 1: to be adjusted vertically and may also be adjusted laterally by sliding the threaded post 1% to any position within the limits of the transversely extending slot 13 formed in the outwardly projecting horizontal portion 12 of the fixed bracket 11. It is also evident that both adjustments may be accomplished by a single adjustment means and locked in the desired adjustment by drawing the lower nut 18 securely to the lower surface of the horizontally projecting portion 12 of the bracket 11.

Each bracket is preferably furnished with a watershed 19, in this case a plate or stamping which may be of the form shown in Figs. 2 and 3. r

The track or hanger may be composed of a single plate 20, which extends the entire width of the door 21 and is attached thereto in any preferred manner as by bolts or screws extending through the fiat portion 22 thereof. The upper portion of the plate is to the head l5 serves to retain the ball or roller instead of Fig. 6.

In Fig. 8, I have shown a modified form where instead of using asingle sheet or plate I employ separate castings 27 secured to the door 21 as by bolts 28 and shaped substantially in the same manner as the plate 20. The hooked or curved upper portion 29 is formed toreceive a track 30 having a roller channel 31 substantially as the construction above described and shown in Fig. 2 and engaging the brackets in the same manner.

The plurality of fixed brackets carrying a plurality of adjustable rollers together with roller engaging hanger mechanism which form the principal features of the present invention will now be described:

A plurality of units consisting of the peening as described in bracket, post, roller, adjusting nuts and I watershed are fixed to the wall of a buildmg or car in substantial alinement preferably with one of the rollers intermediate the plurality being omitted to'allow the hanger to be admitted after which the roller is replaced thereby making it impossible to re move the door during its normal operation. It 1s also evident from the construction heretofore described that the door can be adjusted to allow for warping of the walls due to weather conditions and in the case where it is applied to a box car or the like, it serves to overcome binding and sagging due to accidents because of the slight possibility of all the fixtures being damaged at one time.

Heretofore when an accident occurred to a car equipped with the style of track that was attached to the car instead of the door, any slight dent or depression in the length of the track would cause the door to bind or stop intermediate its length of travel and its adj usting features rendered useless thereby causing considerable waste of time and labor and frequently a total loss to the fixture. I overcome the above difiiculty by minimizing and confining to certain locations the mechanism that could be damaged from the above described causes.

It is also evident that from the nature of the above described fixtures or units, the roller members can be adjusted to a slight pitch which would serve to cause the door to open or close of its own weight, proving a valuable asset in the case of elevator doors and warehouse fire doors.

It is also evident that by the use of a plurality of units any one ofthe parts thereof may be replaced with little outlay of expense or labor. Another important feature of the above described arrangement being the minimizing of the amount of hanger or track heretofore necessary and also in greatly reducing the necessary watershed as far as cost and bulkiness' is concerned,

It will readily'be seen from the above disclosure that a very simple and efficient construction has been provided and a construction whereby a plurality ofv adjustable units and cooperating parts does away with the necessity of accurate castings and hanger track heretofore necessary.

While I have in the above specification described one embodiment which my invention may assume, it should be understood that it is capable of modification and can be applied to barns, cars, warehouses, garages, elevators, rolling ladders, overhead carriers, etc., and that such modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the following claims:

1. In hanger construction, the combination. of a series of spaced brackets each provided with a bearing roller and a track bridging shaped to be self retaining thereon.

2. In hanger construction, the combination of a series of alined brackets each provided with a vertical post carrying a ball bearing and a movable element suspended on said brackets by a track overhanging said posts and formed with a groove engaging said bearings, the overhanging portion of said track terminating in a depending flange. 3. In hanger construction, the combination of a series of alined brackets each provided with an apertured shelf, apost mountedin each aperture and having a socket on its end, a ball rotatably mountedin said socket, and a movable element suspended on said brackets by a track overhanging said posts gnld formed'with agroove engaging said 4. A fixture for sliding doors comprising a bracket adapted to be secured to a support, and having a slot therein, a post engaging insaid slot and carrying a roller at one end, the post being adjustable both horizontally and vertically in the slot, and means for securing the post in adjusted position.

5. A fixture for sliding doors comprising a bracket adapted to be secured to a support and having a horizontal projecting shelf, an adjustable post engaging in a slot in said shelf, a roller supported by one end of the post, adjusting means carried by the other end of the post whereby the post and roller may be adjusted both horizontally and vertically in the slot.

6. A fixture for sliding doors comprising a bracket adapted to be secured to a support, and having a slot therein, a post engaging in said slot and carrying a roller at' one end, the post being adjustable both horizontally and vertically in the slot, and means for securing the post in adjusted position, and a Water shed adapted to be secured to the bracket and projecting over the post and roller.

7 A hanger bracket comprising a vertical portion, a shelf portion, a roller supporting post mounted on the shelf portion, and a Water shed secured to the vertical portion and extending outwardly and downwardly above the post.

In testimony whereof I affix n1 si nature.

KENNETH JosEP TdBiN. 

